Time Spiral has claimed a trophy! It only took a few short months following the unbanning of the Urza's Saga rare for it to find its way to the top of the Legacy metagame. Alix Hatfield broke it with a mono blue build that combined Candelabra of Tawnos with High Tide to generate absurd amounts of mana with Cunning Wish providing a tutor package and Blue Sun's Zenith providing the kill. It was an exciting Top 8 filled with Legacy ringers and a variety of powerful decks. Junk in particular has been doing very well on the Open Series circuit. A New Jersey event meant northeastern pros and the old guard was out in force. Mike Flores Chris Pikula and even Jon Finkel himself could all be seen wandering the halls and battling some Magic with Finkel appearing in the finals of our second Draft Open. This Sunday was possibly the best on the Open Series has had yet with a record-breaking 296 players in Legacy and side events filling left and right. Memphis is just around the corner; let's make it bigger and better!  Loading Event Photos...
 Alix Hatfield
 By Glenn JonesLegacy Open Top 8 ProfilesMeet the Top 8 competitors in the StarCityGames.com Legacy Open in Edison.  By Glenn JonesFinals: Alix Hatfield vs. Eli Kassis“I feel like it's a foregone conclusion” Eli said. “Let's get it done and get out of here.” Eli was not optimistic about his chances against the High Tide/Time Spiral combo deck that Alix had brought to the table.  By Glenn JonesSemifinals: Alix Hatfield vs. Eric EnglishAlix Hatfield has been on a roll with his High Tide/Time Spiral deck in today's event but time would tell if Eric English would be able to keep him out of the finals with his G/W/B Rock deck.  By Glenn JonesTop 16 Legacy DecklistsCheck out the decks used by the top competitors at StarCityGames.com Legacy Open Edison.  By Glenn JonesQuarterfinals: Jack Wang vs. Alix HatfieldAlix Hatfield bashed his way through the field today with a High Tide list designed to abuse Candelabra of Tawnos and finds himself poised to claim a Legacy Open championship.  By Glenn JonesRound 9: Mark Tocco vs. Gerard FabianoMark was in a safe position to draw into Top 8 but Gerard could not guarantee his own berth and found himself playing it out on SCGLive instead.  By Glenn JonesQuick Question: What's the Biggest Distraction from Playtesting You Face?What are some of the things that the best players have to deal with when preparing for events? By Glenn JonesRound 8: Jack Wang vs. Shane DowneyWith a single loss to each of their names already it would be life or death on the bubble this round.  By Glenn JonesDeck Tech: Thopter/Sword with David GearhartDavid has put Tezzeret Agent of Bolas to good use in an Enlightened Tutor build focused on putting together Sword of the Meek and Thopter Foundry to kill the opponent. By Glenn JonesRound 7: AJ Sacher vs. Adam Barnello“My hands are getting sore from shuffling” AJ said as he began the ritual once again. He hadn't had much of a break following the Top 8 of the Standard Open and a full weekend of Magic tends to wear you down. By Glenn JonesDeck Tech: Doomsday Show with Gerry Thompson“Recently I've been looking for the most powerful combo deck” Gerry said. “I kind of forgot the deck existed after it made Top 8 in Columbus and it seemed really powerful.” By Glenn JonesQuick Question: Which Format Will Tezzeret Agent of Bolas Call Home?The powerful new Planeswalker from Mirrodin Besieged is making waves in Magic but which format will he have the biggest impact on? By Glenn JonesRound 6: Eli Kassis vs. David GearhartEli Kassis of Jupiter Games fame posted a Top 8 finish in our Legacy Open last weekend and he continued to carry the torch of GWB today. By Glenn JonesQuick Question: Why is Combo Experiencing a Resurgence in Legacy?With the rise in representation at Legacy events Combo seems to be on the rise. We asked some of the best why that is. By Glenn JonesDeck Tech: Cephalid Life with Mike FloresThe metagame vulnerability had been exploited however and now combo is ready to become king. Mike Flores is excited to be piloting one such strategy and is confident that someone will be posting a significant finish with it over the next several rounds.
 Patrick Sullivan
By Glenn JonesFinals: Patrick Sullivan vs. Mike EisenhauerPatrick Sullivan lives in California and makes card games for a living now but way back when he was just another kid at a card shop in Jersey slinging spells with the best of them. By Glenn JonesSemifinals: Jonathan Sukenik vs. Mike Eisenhauer“Is Baneslayer good?” Jon asked and Mike nodded. “Yeah it's been nuts.” By Glenn JonesQuarterfinals: Patrick Sullivan vs. Edgar FloresPatrick had pulled together a fiery concoction and cruised into the elimination rounds on the back of his trusty Goblin Guides and Lightning Bolts. Edgar Flores had managed to repeat his 8-0 performance from the previous weekend once again drawing into Top 8 early with U/W Caw-Blade. By Glenn JonesTop 16 Standard DecklistsCheck out the decks used by the top competitors at StarCityGames.com Standard Open Edison. By Glenn JonesStandard Open Top 8 ProfilesMeet the Top 8 competitors in the StarCityGames.com Standard Open in Edison. By Glenn JonesRound 10: Jake Gagnon vs. Lance KibeTwo unknowns were battling for one of a couple unclaimed Top 8 slots in the last round—these local heroes were fighting to keep the trophy here! By Glenn JonesRound 9: Dennis Gleason vs. Josh RavitzThe search for victory has led Josh to Edison and he is once again on the bubble for Top 8 with his trusty Caw-Blade. By Glenn JonesRound 8: Patrick Sullivan vs. Matt FerrandoPatrick “The Rainmaker” Sullivan took some time off from his career in game design on the west coast to visit New Jersey and decided to sling some red spells in the meantime. By Glenn JonesQuick Question: Which 'Fatties' Should RUG Be Playing?RUG has a wide array of finishers available to it - find out which ones these players like most. By Glenn JonesRound 7: AJ Sacher vs. Eric EnglishProfessional fish AJ Sacher is playing a version of the UWr Caw-Blade deck that won the last Standard Open modified by Gerry AJ and Drew Levin to react to the field. By Glenn JonesRound 6: Gerry Thompson vs. Ben Lundquist“I would rather play anyone else in the room” Gerry admitted and Ben returned the sentiment. By Glenn JonesQuick Question: Will Caw-Blade Win the Edison Standard Open?We ask some of the best players in the room if the current Standard favorite will carry this weekend's Standard Open. By Glenn JonesDeck Tech: Darkwing Duck with Gerard FabianoGFabs and Ben Lundquist are both playing a Caw-Blade list that adds black into the mix for an assortment of removal disruption and beatdown. By Glenn JonesQuick Question: Which StarCityGames.com Open Event Are You Looking Forward to the Most?See which of the remaining 24 Open Series events in 2011 players are most excited about. By Glenn JonesRound 1: Mike Flores vs. Robert BakerMike Flores has been touting his Pyromancer Ascension deck in his columns for some time now. By Glenn JonesDeck Tech: Jumanji with Lewis LaskinThe combination of card advantage Vengevines and mana disruption is great at besting the Sword and Vengevine even interacts favorably against both blades—you won't mind discarding or milling the hasty 4/3.  Gabe Bonder  By Drew LevinJon Finkel Draft Open Walkthrough & QuarterfinalsJon Finkel crushed his way through the first round of the draft challenge. Now we have a complete draft walkthrough decklist and strategy from the man himself! Quarterfinals match included! By Glenn JonesTop 16 Legacy DecklistsCheck out the decks used by the top competitors at StarCityGames.com Legacy Open Edison. By Glenn JonesDeck Tech: Thopter/Sword with David GearhartDavid has put Tezzeret Agent of Bolas to good use in an Enlightened Tutor build focused on putting together Sword of the Meek and Thopter Foundry to kill the opponent. By Glenn JonesDeck Tech: Doomsday Show with Gerry Thompson“Recently I've been looking for the most powerful combo deck” Gerry said. “I kind of forgot the deck existed after it made Top 8 in Columbus and it seemed really powerful.” By Glenn JonesDeck Tech: Cephalid Life with Mike FloresThe metagame vulnerability had been exploited however and now combo is ready to become king. Mike Flores is excited to be piloting one such strategy and is confident that someone will be posting a significant finish with it over the next several rounds. By Glenn JonesTop 16 Standard DecklistsCheck out the decks used by the top competitors at StarCityGames.com Standard Open Edison. By Glenn JonesDeck Tech: Darkwing Duck with Gerard FabianoGFabs and Ben Lundquist are both playing a Caw-Blade list that adds black into the mix for an assortment of removal disruption and beatdown. By Glenn JonesDeck Tech: Jumanji with Lewis LaskinThe combination of card advantage Vengevines and mana disruption is great at besting the Sword and Vengevine even interacts favorably against both blades—you won't mind discarding or milling the hasty 4/3. |
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